Colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer among Native Americans, behind lung cancer. Northern Plains Native Americans, for example, face an incidence of the illness 53 percent higher than non-Hispanic whites, and among Alaska Natives the incidence is 115 percent higher. Yet screening for this type of cancer is not typically covered by the underfunded Indian Health Service.

“Congress would rather let Indians die than adequately fund the Indian Health Service,” Dr. Donald Warne told Newsweek. Werne, is a Native American and an advocate for better health services for Native communities. Some say that failing to provide adequate health care for Native Americans is a violation of the treaties the government signed with the tribes. Read more about this here.